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Laughter

While I have always loved this quote, these words took on a new meaning two weeks ago on a delivery to a family from Bhutan. The father greeted us eagerly in the parking lot and cheerfully welcomed us (the volunteers) into his home. After the furniture was arranged just right, all twenty of us huddled together in the living room to hear about the family’s journey.

The father spoke some English but most of the communication came from contagious smiles, glistening eyes, and joyful laughs. Any small moment of silence was broken by a rich laugh from the father that seemed to say just about everything. It was not a laugh of humor, although there were many of those as well. It was almost as if he possessed so much joy on the inside that it overflowed as laughter; laughter that expressed his relief to finally be safe with his family, laughter that showed his gratefulness, and laughter that revealed his excitement for a new life in the United States.

The delivery with this family was something special. I discovered the power of a laugh and the connection that it brings between people of any language.